Teresa Giudice’s brother Joe Gorga tells HollywoodLife EXCLUSIVELY that he fears for his sister after she told ‘RHONJ’ viewers that she’ll split with husband Joe Giudice if he’s deported.

Joe Gorga deeply cares for his sister, Teresa Giudice, which is why he’s worried about the heartache she’ll endure if she does, in fact, end up divorcing Joe Giudice. During the the third part of the Real Housewives of New Jersey reunion special, which aired on March 6, Teresa confirmed to host Andy Cohen that she’d split with Joe if he ends up getting deported to Italy after he’s released from prison later this month. Teresa showed very little emotion when she made the surprising confession, but when HollywoodLife spoke with Joe Gorga EXCLUSIVELY just one day after the episode aired, he said he doesn’t think Teresa’s mentally ready for a divorce.

“Is [Teresa] mentally prepared? I don’t think so. She’s held on this long, but is she mentally prepared? No, I don’t think so,” he said before further explaining, “She is still holding that anger in. You know when you hold that anger, that’s what happens. But then there are days that she wants [Joe Giudice], she misses him and there are day she is mad. That’s all. That’s normal, right? Is that normal? [Her] emotions are up and down.”

But even so, Joe Gorga feels Teresa is doing the right thing by staying in the States with her kids if Joe Giudice loses his appeal and must fulfill a judge’s Oct. 2018 ruling that he must be evicted from this country. “She can’t leave. The kids can’t leave. They just can’t get up and go to Italy,” he said before adding that none of it will be easy for Teresa. He explained, “[Teresa]’s struggling without a husband, and dealing with all this drama. Life, it’s hard. Very very hard. She puts up a good face, but she’s… it’s tough.”

Joe and Teresa, both 46, have been married since 1999, and they share four daughters together — Gia, 18, Gabriella, 15, Milania, 13, and Audriana, 10. In early 2015, Teresa went to prison for 11 months after she and husband Joe were both found guilty of fraud. She was released on Dec. 23, 2015 and Joe then entered prison for his own sentence in March 2016. Joe’s set to be released on March 14, 2019, but in October 2018, a judge ordered him to be deported to his native Italy at the end of his sentence, since he never obtained American citizenship. Joe and Teresa have since appealed that decision, but a ruling on that appeal has not yet been made.

Meanwhile, Teresa’s brother Joe Gorga is currently promoting his new book, A Gorga’s Guide To Success, which is now an international #1 best seller and a motivational book about his life growing up with immigrant parents and becoming successful all on his own. He’s also gearing up for motivational speaking to help others with their real estate careers!